Daily News Briefs

Candela Corp., a Wayland, Mass., maker of laser systems used in cosmetic procedures such as hair removal, wrinkle reduction, tattoo removal and acne, has announced an exclusive, multiyear agreement with Chindex International Inc., a Bethesda, Md.-based provider of health-care products and services in China, including Hong Kong. Chindex will distribute Candela's systems to dermatologists, plastic surgeons, family practitioners, OB/GYNs and general and vascular surgeons; it has operated a Candela Laser Clinic and Training Center at its Beijing United Family Hospital for the past year. . . . Houston-based Carbon Nanotechnologies Inc. (CNI) has been issued a US patent for pure and composite materials containing derivitized single-wall carbon nanotubes in substantial alignment with one another; the company said it paves the way for products such as plastics with electrical conductivity, improved fibers for bullet-proof vests, stronger and longer-lasting plastic parts and brighter, more energy-efficient flat-panel TVs and displays. The technology is part of the intellectual property developed by Nobel Prize-winning scientist Richard Smalley and licensed exclusively to CNI by Rice University in 2001.